Foot-rest for rocking-chairs



(No Model.) 3-Sheets.-Sheet I.

L. E. ARMSTRONG. FOOT BEST FOR ROCKING CHAIRS.

No. 513,169. I Patented Jan. 23, 1894.

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. L. E. ARMSTRONG.

FOOT BEST FOR ROCKING CHAIRS.

No. 513,169. PatentedJan. 23, 1894.

3 t 9 .6 h 8 up u e e h S 3 G N 0 R T S M R A H L a d 0 M 0 m FOOT RESTFOR ROCKING CHAIRS.

Patented Jan. 23, 1894.-

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WASHINGTON. n c

time STATES PATENT Orrice.

LOUIS E. ARMSTRONG, OF FORT DODGE, IOWA.

FOOT-REST FOR ROCKING-CHAIRS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 513,169, dated January23,1894.

Application filed September 9, 1890. Serial No. 364,478. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS E. ARMSTRONG, a citizen of the United States,residing at Fort Dodge, in the county otWebster and State of Iowa, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Foot-Rests for Rocking-Ohairs; and I do hereby declare that the fol low ng is afull, clear, andexact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled inthe art to which it pertains to make and use the same, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof, in which-Figure 1, is a side elevation, showing the foot rest drawn back forusing the chair as an ordinary rocker. Fig. 2, is a side elevation,showing the foot rest partly extended and in position for use, by thefull lines, and showing, by dotted lines, the foot rest dropped on tothe floor. Fig. 3, is a side elevation of the reverse side of the chair,to Figs. 1 and 2, showing the foot rest fully extended and in positionfor use, by the full lines, and showing by the dotted lines, themovement of the rest and chair in rocking. Fig. 4-,is atop or plan viewof the chair, with the foot rest extended. Fig. 5, s a detail, partly insection, showing the ad usting pinion and hand wheel, for one side ofthe chair. Fig. 6, is a detail, partly in section, showing the adjustingpinion and the lock therefor for the other side of the chair. Fig. is aside elevation of the devices shown in Fig. 6. Fig. 8, is a sideelevation, showing a sliding foot rest instead of a roller. Fig. 9, 1s atop or plan view of the sliding foot rest of Fig. 8. Fig. 10, is across-section of Fig. 9. Fig. 11, is a detail, showing the stop for thefoot rest of Fig. 8. Fig. 12 is a sectional elevation showing therollers traveling on the base rail of the chair, and the rack barsapplied to the inside of the chair. Fig. 13 is a top or plan Viewshowing the bottom of the chair, the foot rest and rack bars, arrangedas shown in Fig. 12.

This invention relates to foot rests designed for attachment to and usewith a rocking chair, and has for its objects to construct a foot restwhich will furnish a support or rest for the limbs or feet of theoccupant of the chair, and at the same time not interfere with therocking movement of the chair, and which can be raised to support thelimbs of the occubination of parts hereinafter described and pointed outin the claims.

A, represents a foot rest of a cylindrical form, as shown in Fig. 1, andhaving at each end a center trunnion a, on which the rest can oscillate.This cylinder rest can be made of wood, or of a paper, metal, or othershell with end heads, and, if desired, can be covered with cloth orother material, and its diameter can be one that will furnish a supportfor thelimbsot' the occupantof the chair without any discomfort, byresting on the cylinder.

B, are arms, one for each side of the chair; each arm B, as shown,iscurved, and its outer end has a bearing to receive the trunnion a of thefoot rest A, and each arm has a roller 6 to rest on the floor,suchroller being mounted in an ear or bracket 1) attached to the arm B. A

O, are sliding bars, one for each arm B, and attachedto its arm by a pinor pivot c, in the construction shown, and each bar 0 has, on its upperedge, a rack f, by means of which and a pinion, the bar can be advancedand receded.

D, is a longitudinal slot in each. bar 0, which slot receives a headedpin d, by means of which the bar 0 is attached to the side of the chairso as to be free to move forward and back, carrying with it the arm Band roller rest A.

E, is a brace rod running from the bar O to Y hole e in which case thearm B will not .be

held up but is free to drop, turning on the pivot c, for the roller footrest to lie on the floor, as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 2.

F, is a pinion, one for each bar O, the cogs of which mesh with the rackf of the bar 0.

G, is a rod or shaft, on which are secured the pinions F, by splines gor in any other suitable firm manner. This sh aft is mounted in theframe work of the chair, and projects at one end-beyond the side of thechair, and has attached thereto ahand wheel gby means of which the shaftG can be rotated in either direction to turn the pinions F, and advanceand recede the barsG. The pinion F, on the opposite side of the chair tothe hand wheel, g, is locked, so as to hold the shaft Gagainst turning,by a catch h, arranged to engage between the cogs of the pinion, asshownin Fig. 7, which catch is operated by a button h on a stem passingthrough a slot 72." in the side piece of the chair frame, as shown inFig. 7.

H, are the base rails of the chair, one for each side.

I, are the rockers, one for each base rail H.

J, is the scat frame, to which the rockers are attached.

The chair is to have arms, a back, and seat and back cushions, as usual,and can be of the form and construction shown, or other form of baserocking chairs.

The roller foot rest is mounted by the trunnions a, between the outerends of the arms B; the arms B are attached to the bars 0 by the pins orpivots c; the bars 0 are attached one to each side of the chair by theheaded pin or screw (1; the braces E are attached to the bars 0 toproject forward and engage with the arms B; the rod or shaft G. isplaced in position in the frame of the chair, and the pinions F arekeyed or otherwise secured to the rod or shaft to mesh with the racks fof the bars 0; the hand wheel 9 or other suitable handle is attached tothe end rod or shaft G on the right hand side of the chair, or the lefthand, as desired, and the catch his placed in the side rail of the chairto engage with the pinion F, and the rods, E are hooked into or engagewith the arms 13 to hold such arms upright and the roller foot restelevated, and in position to receive the limbs of the occupant of thechair and when so arranged the chair and foot rest are ready for use.

In use, the foot rest is adjusted forward or back the distance requiredfor the person using the chair to have an easy rest of the limbsthereon, and such adjustment is had by raising the catch it fromengagement with the pinion F and turning the rod or shaft Gin the properdirection through the handle g, for the pinions F to advance or recedethe bars 0 and bring the foot rest A in position to furnish a supportfor the limbs between the knee and ankle when extended and in thisposition the limbs will be carried by the traveling foot rest, whichwill reciprocate or roll forward and back with the forward and backwardrock of the chair. The foot rest will travel be neath the limbs and atthe same time the limbs will travel on the foot rest, giving a supportfor the limbs which will not require any exertion on the part of theoccupant of the chair, except the rocking of the chair, as the limbsrest naturally and move readily on the foot rest, without anycontracting and extending of the limbs, as is the case with an immovableor non-traveling foot rest with which the knees must bend and the limbsrise and fall in the forward and backward rock of the chair, and thisresult of an easyand natural support for the limbs is bad by thereciprocating or oscillating travel of the foot rest, which rolls orturns forward with the forward rock of the chair and rolls or turnsbackward with the backward movement of the chair without any change inthe position of the limbs which remain fully extended, and are notcramped or otherwise fatigued.

The pin d is located at or near the center of oscillation of the body ofthe chair, so as to give only a slight travel of the arms B and bars 0,with the rock of the chair, as indicated by the full and dotted lines inFig. 3, and such travel in no wise interferes with the ease and comfortof the foot rest as a whole, but accommodates the foot rest to the changing position of the chair, and maintains the same relative positionbetween. the chairand foot rest, allowing the limbs to ride on the restin the best position possible for comfort and ease in connection withthe reciprocating travel of the rest itself.

The rest A, instead of having a reciprocating travel by rolling forwardand back, can have such travel through a sliding movement, and suchconstruction of restis shown in Fig. 8, in which A is a rest made of aflat piece of wood or other suitable material, supported at each end bya tenon which enters a groove 0 in an end-pieceB, and the end pieces 13are connected together by a cross-piece G, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10.The frame formed by the end-pieces B, cross-piece C, and carrying thesliding foot rest A, is supported between the outer ends of the arms B,by trunnions a, and in order to hold the frame against tippingvertically, a pin a, on each end-piece B projects into a semicircularslot at" in the end of the arms B, asshownin Figs. 8 and 11.

The sliding foot rest and chair are used the same as the rolling footrest and chair, the only difference being that in one case thereciprocating movement is had by the sliding of the foot rest forwardand back with the rocking movement, and in the other case suchreciprocating movement is had by the rolling forward and back of thefoot rest.

The chair with the foot rest applied thereto can be made into and usedas an ordinary rocker by withdrawing or receding the foot rest to theposition shown in Fig. 1, so that the foot rest lies under, or partiallyunder, the front of the seat, in which position it is out of the way,and does not interfere with sitting in and using the chair, with thefeet resting on the floor, and to bring the rest into The foot rest canbe dropped from its elevated position to rest on the floor and be usedfor a rest for the feet, as shown by the dotted hues in Fig. 2, to dowhich all that is required to spring the braces E from their engagementwith the arms B, releasing such arms, WhlGh drop down, allowing theroller rest to lie on the floor, where it is free to roll,

and will not interfere with the rocking movement of the chair; and whereit is desired to have the rest at all times in an elevated position, thearms B and bars 0 can be made of a single piece.

The rollers b furnish a traveling support for the foot rest, by which aneasy-movement is had and at the same time less wear is had by the travelback and forth on the carpet or floor, and instead of having the rollers19 run on the carpet or floor, such rollers can be arranged to travel onthe base rails H of the chair.

The bars 0, are shown applied to the outside of the chair, but theycould be applied to the inside, or they could be located in slots formedin the rockers I, if so desired, without departing from the essential.feature of the invention, which is a foot rest which reciprocates ormoves forward and back in unison with the movements of the chair inrocking, and on and by which. the limbs of the occupant of the chairwill rest and be carried in an easy. and naturalextended position.

An arrangement of the rollers b, traveling on the base rails of thechair, and the bars 0 located inside of the chair, is shown in Figs. 12and 13, and with the construction there shown, an arm B is attached atits front end to the arm Band extended rearwardly, and carries theroller b, which runs upon a track I) secured to the base rails H on theinside, which track is of sufficient length to allow of the forward andback adjustment of the foot rest, with the roller 1) running on itstrack I)".

The pinions F are secured on the shaft or rod G, and the shaft or rod islocked against turning by the engagement of the catch it with one of thepinions. The shaft Grand the pinions are located so that when the chairis normal, these parts are. in a central vertical line, or nearly so, ofthe center of rock for the chair. The pinions Feach mesh with a rack fof each bar 0, and each pinion,with the forward tip or rock of .thechair, will have a backward turn by reason of the shaft G being lockedand the pinions being attached to such shaft, andthis backward. turn ofthe pinions through theengagement of the cogs of each pinion with thecogs. of its' rack barf will draw each bar 0 backward, and with the backward tip or rock of the chair, each pinion F has a forward turn, andsuch forward turn through the engagement of the pinions with the racksf, will carry the bars 0 forward. This forward and backward travel ofthe bars 0 will give a corresponding travel to the arms B, which carrythe foot-rest,. so that such arms have a travel forward and backindependent of the forward and back travel communicated to the foot-restby the limbs of the occupant of the chair, and this forward and backtravel of the bars 0 and the arms B will be to the limit of the turningof the pinions F and the number of teeth of the pinions, which arethereby brought into mesh with the teeth of the racksf, and is indicatedfor the back travel of the bars 0 and arms 13 by the dotted lines inFig. 3, in which figure the chair is shown rocked forward by dottedlines.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a rocking chair, of a foot rest for the limbs ofthe occupant having a reciprocating rolling or forward and back movementof its own communicated thereto by the limbs resting thereon coincidentwith the rocking movements of the chair, arms supporting and carryingthe foot rest, andmeans for connecting the arms with the chair giving aforward and back travelindependent of the reciprocation of the footrest, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

2. The combination with a rocking chair, of a foot-rest for the limbs ofthe occupant, having a rolling reciprocating movement or forward andback travel of its own communicated thereto by the limbs restingthereon, from the rocking movements of the chair, arms carrying andsupporting the foot-rest and having a forward and back travelindependent of the reciprocation of the foot-rest, and sliding barsconnecting the arms with the chair, substantially as and for thepurposes specified.

3. The combination, with a rocking chair, of a foot-rest for the limbsof the occupant, havingareciprocating or forward and back travelcommunicated thereto by the limbs resting thereon from the rockingmovements of the chair, arms carrying and supporting the footrest,sliding bars pivoted to the arms and connected to the chair, and movingthe foot-rest forward and back independent of its reciprocation, andbraces connecting the supporting arms and the sliding bars, for holdingthe arms elevated and allowing the arms to drop, substantially as andfor the purposes specified.

4. The combination with a rocking chair, of a foot rest for the limbs ofthe occupant hav-.

ing a reciprocating or forward and back travelof its own, communicatedthereto by the limbs the rest, sliding bars connected with the arms ingthe slot and a pinion engaging-the rack of each sliding bar, connectingthe bars to the chair and giving the foot rest arms a forward.

and each having a slot and rack, a pin enterand back travel,substantially as and for the purposes specified.

5. The roller rest A, for the limbs of theoccupantofarockingchair,andsupporting arms B, carrying the trunnions ofthe rest A, in combination with the sliding bars 0, carrying the arms B,and each having a longitudinal slot D, and adjustably attached to arocking chair, for supporting the limbs of the occupantin anoutstretched position, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

6. The roller rest A, for the limbs of the occupant of the rockingchair, and havinga reciprocation given thereto by the limbs restingthereon, and supporting arms B, carrying the trunnions of the rest A, incombination with the sliding bars 0, carrying the arms B, and eachhaving a longitudinal slot D, for adjustable attachment to a rockingchair, piv ots 0 connecting the arms B and the sliding bars (3, andbraces E, detachably connecting the arms B and sliding bars 0,substantially as and for the purposes specified.

7. The roller rest A, for the limbs of the occupant of a rocking chair,and having a reciprocation from the limbs resting thereon, andsupportingarms B carrying the trunnions of the rest- A,in combinationwith the sliding bars 0, carrying the supporting arms B, and each havinga rackf, and pinions F, engaging the racksf, for moving the bars 0 andadjusting the relation of the foot-rest to the chair, substantially asand for the purposes specified.

8. The roller rest A, for the limbs ofthe 0ccnpant of a rocking chair,and having a reciprocation from the limbs resting thereon, andsupporting arms B,carrying the trunnions on the rest A, in combinationwith the sliding rack bars 0, carrying the supporting arms B, pinions E,engaging the rack bars C, rod or shaft G, hand wheel g, and stop It,substantially as and for the purposes specified.

LOUIS E. ARMSTRONG.

Witnesses:

O. W. BOND, JNo. G. MAoGREooR.

